Chinnaswamy Stadium is ready to hold its first tournament since the stampede on June 4

Chinnaswamy Stadium is ready to hold its first tournament since the stampede on June 4

M Chinnaswamy Stadium set to host KSCA’s K Thimmappiah Memorial Trophy matches. the Chinnaswamy stadium will host six matches, including a semi-final and the final, from September 26.

The M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru is set to host cricket matches again for the first time since the tragic stampede on June 4, which claimed 11 lives during Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s IPL victory celebrations. The stadium will be one of the venues for the Karnataka State Cricket Association’s (KSCA) K Thimmappiah Memorial Trophy a red-ball, multi-day pre-season tournament featuring 16 teams. It will host six matches, including one semi-final and the final, starting September 26. However, all matches will be played behind closed doors, with no fans allowed inside.

Several well-known Indian players will be part of the tournament, including Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Hanuma Vihari, Vijay Shankar, and Shashank Singh. Teams from Mumbai, Vidarbha, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh are among the participants. Despite the high-profile names, the matches will be held without spectators due to ongoing safety concerns.

RCB recently broke their silence on the June 4 incident, announcing that they have provided ₹25 lakh in financial support to the families of the victims. The franchise also committed to long-term efforts to improve crowd safety and event management. Meanwhile, the KSCA, the Karnataka government, and the state police remain under investigation by a one-man tribunal looking into the stampede.

The stadium is currently facing additional challenges. The local electricity board (BESCOM) has cut off power due to non-compliance with fire safety regulations. As of September 3, the venue had not received a No Objection Certificate (NOC), and is relying on generators and solar power to function. These issues have led to the stadium losing hosting rights for five matches of the upcoming Women’s World Cup, including the opener, a semi-final, and the final scheduled for November 2.

The Maharaja Trophy, Karnataka’s franchise-based T20 tournament, also had to be moved out of Bengaluru. The KSCA’s request to host the event behind closed doors at Chinnaswamy was rejected by the police, and the tournament was eventually held in Mysore under similar restrictions.

A government-appointed committee recently declared the stadium “unsafe” for large-scale events. The report strongly recommended shifting major matches to venues better equipped to handle large crowds. In response, Karnataka’s deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar announced plans to build a new cricket stadium with a capacity of 60,000 seats, as part of a 75-acre sports complex in the city’s industrial suburbs.